User blog:Daniel.whyte.568/The Traitor Chapter 2
Light crashed through the open door with a bang and flooded the prison chamber like a divine arrival. The denizens groaned and covered their eyes, scrabbling away from the bars for fear of kicks and switches. 'Silence curs!' Two large guards dragged a foreign man with an eyepatch in chains to an open cell. They tossed him within and locked the gate. 'You'll rot in here until our boys recover, if what you say can be trusted.' Barked a guard. 'Or till they croak.' gurgled the other. The first guard struck the other lightly before continuing. 'Either way, the captain will decide your fate. Pray to whatever gods allow a coward into paradise.' The guard spat. They left as they called to the other cells 'This foreigner is a poisoner and assaulted an innocent mage. Listen not to his words, they are envenomed as his blades.' The door slammed, the light recoiled and the room was left silent and dark. 'Not sure about innocent.' Scoffed the Traitor, sitting up and looking about, his golden eye glowing slightly. He scoured the room, seeking wards or detectors. 'We are unwatched.' He surmised. A stone fell in the cell to his left. He gazed through the bars, his sight unhindered by dark. A sickly elf sat against their cot in a simple woolen shift. Their head was bowed. Food had been abandoned by the cell door to mold and vermin. As he drew closer, he saw the elf's whole body was wreathed in necromantic aura. The elf twisted their head towards the Traitor, their eyes fixed on the face of the man. Under his eyes were marred with strange, black rivulets. 'Am I your next victim, poisoner?' His expression grew confused when he saw the Traitor's strange eye. The Traitor hastily brought their eyepatch back over it. 'I suspect my poison would have no ill effect on you, bounty hunter.' 'Then that sees beyond mere sight.' The elf replied 'Did you pluck it from the corpse of an angel?' The Traitor chuckled dryly despite himself. 'Nothing so crude. It...was a gift. No. An exchange.' The hunter was silent for a moment. 'You must've paid a high price for such a thing.' He said solemnly. 'I did.' The two figures sat parallel. 'May I ask your name?' 'Enedwaith. Tel'Ianta.' The Traitor squinted 'that sounds a Telinor name.' 'Indeed. T'was my home not long ago.' Enedwaith turned to the man 'and your name, poisoner?' The Traitor shrugged 'my name was part of the price.' 'Then what do they call you?' 'The Traitor, when they recall me.' 'That's a foul name between friends.' The Traitor said nothing, but stood and approached the door of his cell. He squinted at the lock, then pulled a few tools from a slit within his eyepatch and set to work. 'I need your help Enedwaith. You found a mage outside a tower a few moons ago. I need to return to that tower.' Enedwaith stood and leaned against his cell bars, watching the man work furtively. 'That tower's a foul place to go looking for anything, poisoner.' 'I hardly need a lesson in foul places.' the Traitor grimaced at their surroundings. 'And what do you hope to pull from the corpse of this thing then?' The Traitor breathed a sigh. Enedwaith had a knack for barbs and seemed to enjoy having a victim for his wits. His words are more poisonous than mine, he thought, recalling the guards. 'I'm looking for a cure or, a piece of it at least.' 'Hoping to ail your sins?' Grinned Enedwaith. 'They have a chaplain to hand in this keep, perhaps I could summon him for you?' 'What ails me is beyond any local godbotherer.' Replied the Traitor casually, ignoring Ened's thinly-veiled threat. 'But what I seek could purge this curse and save many more beside-' Enedwaith's hand moved swiftly between the bars, and the Traitor felt desperate strength dig into his wrists. He turned his head to face the elf. His face was stern. The black hunger of his eyes loomed heavy on the Traitor and he forced himself to keep his gaze steady. 'Do you speak truly, poisoner, or have your words began to taint my mind as the guard warned?' With his free hand, the Traitor lifted his eyepatch and fixed both eyes upon the elf. 'I did not allow myself to thrown into this cell to torment some listless bounty hunter. I came here to offer a simple exchange; freedom for guidance to the tower. I see now by your swiftness you could free yourself but have chosen to waste away here.' Enedwaith retracted his arms. 'What then can I offer to you, bounty hunter? Should I seek another to find the tower?' They both fell silent. Enedwaith clenched his fists. 'I have my share of curses, poisoner. If you're speaking truly 'bout a treasure that can purge blights, I'll travel with you.' The Traitor returned to their work 'Is your curse likely to harm me?' 'Not unless you plan on sticking me.' 'Then I'll ask no further questions.' The lock clicked and the door swung open. An urgent voice emerged. 'Excellent timing.' The air slipped and Vicyrk stepped forward, cell key in hand. Enedwaith's brow knitted. 'The mage?' Vicyrk regarded the bounty hunter with suspicion. 'I need you both.' Spoke the Traitor. 'And we all have something to gain from the tower.' 'Fine.' Said the elf and sirithi in unison. 'There' grinned the Traitor 'getting along already.' --- The Traitor, Enedwaith and Vicyrk stepped over the prone bodies of the vault guards. 'They took your belongings in there.' Vicyrk pointed at the iron door. 'Do these lot have a key?' Enedwaith looked from a dazed warden to Vicyrk. Vicyrk shook their head. 'The captain has the only key.' 'We don't need a key.' The Traitor extracted his lockpicks and moved towards the door. Enedwaith snatched a wineskin from the table and returned to the archway to keep watch. Vicyrk emitted a low, quick whistle and a grey weasel bounded through the window. Vicyrk gestured at the guards 'Salance, tie them up.' The weasel nodded and set to work. Outside, the sun hung low. The first stars slipped into the sky, winking at the scoundrels through the window. 'Almost.' Said the Traitor. There was a click and the door swung inward. He turned with a smug look which was wilted by sudden, raucous bells. Enedwaith and the Traitor immediately rushed to the vault. Enedwaith threw a rope to Vicyrk and pointed to a window. Vicyrk secured the rope and recalled Salance, sending them out to scout the grounds. As the sirithi stood by, a few guards emerged from the archway and called out over the bells. One threw a hand axe towards him but before he could ward himself it was knocked away by a well-aimed bolt from the vault door. Without pausing to look back Vicyrk clambered out the window. Enedwaith followed, crouching on the sill to fire another shot before springing downwards. The Traitor came last, bowling a smoking orb towards the guards which erupted into choking ash. He jumped out the window and slid down the rope, landing finely next to his companions before Enedwaith cut the rope with a well-placed shot that stuck in the tower wall. Down here the bells were quieter. Vicyrk was the first to speak 'The exit is to the West.' He said hoarsely, breathing heavily. Enedwaith reloaded his crossbow and looked towards the Traitor 'An alarm? Your fancy eye couldn't see that coming?' He was hoarse too, but the exhilaration filled him with nervous laughter. Despite himself, the Traitor laughed along 'I guess I'm rustier than I thought.' The heady rush of adrenaline threatened to overwhelm his senses and the bells faded away. This all felt familiar. He reached out with his mind, desperate to recollect, like a word at the tip of the tongue, but the tip is a precipice and the word is all you were before this, the weight of your old lives threatening to drown you in nostalgic places and forgotten faces. It faded. The bells returned. With some sourness the Traitor finished 'this eye is infallible as it's old wielder.' Enedwaith raised his eyebrows 'So you say?' Before anymore could be said Vicyrk interjected 'We need to move, they've reached the stables.' The three bounded away, back to the oasis. Category:Blog posts